Why it works: Molasses and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,408 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Apples Baked
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Core the apples and place them in a tin roaster.
Pour the molasses or syrup over the apples.
Bake and serve
Bake until the apples are tender.
Serve warm with cream or rich milk.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Molasses + creamtop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,408 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Apple + molassestop 22% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together970 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).
-
Apple + creamtop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,089 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sweet apples
- Softening during baking turns the firm flesh tender and gives the dish its body.
- West india molasses or sugar-house syrup
- Adds sweetness and moisture, and its sugars darken and caramelise in the oven for flavour.
The step that matters
Bake until the apples are tender. Heat softens the apples' cell walls and starches, so they need enough time to become tender throughout. Test the thickest part with a knife. Stopping early leaves them firm in the centre, and overbaking makes them collapse.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, cream):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillafits better
- Strawberryfits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, cream. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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